The all time great batsmen Sachin Tendulkar turns 38 today. He booked a hotel for his birthday celebrations in Hyderabad as Mumbai Indians play Deccan Chargers today in Hyderabad. But he cancelled all his celebrations because of the critical condition of Sathya Sai Baba’s health. Sachin Tendulkar is a devotee of Sathya Sai Baba and is worried of his health condition and is praying for Baba’s recovery. He also hoped his fans to pray along with him for Baba’s recovery. He might not be playing today’s match against Deccan Chargers as he want to visit Puttaparthi in Anantapur District of Andhra Pradesh the place where Baba lives.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Bollywood star and Kolkata Knight Riders team owner Shah Rukh Khan will perform today at the opening ceremony of the Indian Premier League 4. His team will take on the defending champions Chennai Super Kings today at Chennai. The match will start at 20:00 hrs IST. The King Khan will be performing a dance for some popular Tamil tracks which is something new for all his fans as they have seen him dance only to his Bollywood tracks till now. He will perform today for some tamil tracks including some Bollywood tracks with South sizzling star Shriya Sharan. So, all the fans of Shah Rukh and Shriya get ready for the eye catching feast from the stars at the opening ceremony of IPL 2011.

The new captain of Deccan Chargers, Kumar Sangakkara seems to look very confident about his team’s chances of regaining the title in the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League. He said that his team will try to match up with the expectations of Hyderabadi fans and do their best on the field and try and win the IPL this season. Sangakkara said, playing for the Deccan Chargers and leading the team will be a great privilege for him. He praised the Hyderabadi Team for playing well in all the previous three editions of the IPL and winning the title in the second edition.

The fourth edition of the Indian Premier league will start on 8th April, 2011. Two new teams Pune and Kochi were added making it 10 teams for this season. This time as the number of teams increased the tournament was extended to 74 matches. It will be played in group stage and knock out format where there will be two groups consisting of 5 teams each and the leading teams in the group gets qualified for the knock out stage.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional Indian cricket league in twenty20 format. The IPL is initiated and governed by the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India). The headquarters of IPL is situated in Mumbai, its Vice President is Chirayu Amin and Sundar Raman is the chairman and CEO of the Indian Premier League. The IPL was started in 2008 and is played every year in double round-robin and knock out format where each team plays each other twice and the top four teams progress in to the semi final stage i.e., the knock out stage. IPL became the first ever sports event to be broadcasted live on YouTube in 2010. IPL is the second highest paid sports league next to NBA. The average estimated salary for a player of IPL is $3.84 million.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Kumar Sangakkara who captained Sri Lankan national cricket team from the last two years decided to quit from captaincy in ODIs and Twenty20s as his team lost to India in the final of the Cricket World Cup 2011. He scored 465 runs in the tournament and led the team from the front is disappointed with the loss of the final but is very happy with the way that his am performed. The 33 year old batsman from Sri Lanka turns 37 for the next world cup and is not sure that he can make into the Sri Lankan squad in the next edition of the World Cup. In order to help the team find a new captain who will be at the peak of his career during the 2015 world cup he decided to retire from captaincy. However, Sangakkara will continue captaining his side in the upcoming test series against England and Australia. He is proud of his captaincy and the way his team performed during his captaincy. He specified that he has no plans of retirement from international cricket and will be available for selection of playing in all three formats of the game.

The final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 was played between India and Sri Lanka at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. Sri Lanka have won the toss and elected to bat first. Sreesanth replaced Nehra for this match and Randiv replaced Matthews. The Indians bowled very well in the first 10 overs not giving away anything to the Lankans. Zaheer Khan was very impressive with three maiden overs and a wicket of Tharanga for just 2 runs from 20 balls. From there onwards, Dilshan and Sangakkara started building up and were looking good until Harbhajan picked up Dilshan and Yuvraj got Sagakkara out. Jayawardena came to the crease and started building up partnership with Samaraweera but soon Samaraweera became a victim of Yuvraj Singh. Nuwan Kulasekara joined with Jayawardena and both of played really well to get Lankans a fighting total in the final of the Cricket World Cup. In the process Jayawardean got to a brilliant 100 and Perera has added valuable 22 runs of just nine balls. They got nearly 60 runs in he batting powerplay and Sri Lanka posted 274/6 on the board in 50 overs.

Losing the wicket of Virender Sehwag in just the first over is really not a good start for India chasing a target of 275 runs in this very important final. Kohli joined Sachin and the little master looked to be very comfortable playing his shots nicely until he got picked up by Malinga. Sachin scored 18 runs of just 14 balls. Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli then batted really well and started getting a partnership which is very important at that point. Kohli played well and got out for 35 runs to Dilshan who took a splendid catch of his own bowling. MS Dhoni came to the crease and both Gautam and Dhoni started doing just the right thing picking up ones and twos and hitting boundaries when required. They went on exceptionally well not allowing any pressure to build up and not giving Sri Lankans the chance to attack them. In the process Gambhir go out for 97 runs falling just 3 runs shot of a hundred. Yuvraj Singh came to the crease and he along with Dhoni finished off the things and Dhoni gave India a win in style by hitting a six. India won the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 by 6 wickets. The crowd celebrated the victory and there were some emotional scenes in the ground in the Indian team after winning the cup in 28 years gap.

Dhoni was awarded the Man of the match for his brilliant 91 runs in 79 balls. Yuvraj Singh with 15 wickets and 361 runs was given the Player of the Tournament award.

India has finally won the Cricket World Cup at Mumbai after waiting for 28 years to get there. It is India’s second World Cup win and is the first team to win the World Cup at home after hosting the World Cup in the history of cricket. The God of Cricket, Sachin Tendulkar has so many record and awards for him but the only thing that mattered to him is the World Cup. He has achieved so much and is playing international cricket from 22 years but is not in the World Cup winning team for even once which would make his profile incomplete. He came close in 2003 but could no achieve it. Probably playing the last World Cup he wanted to achieve it this time. All his team members wished for this and before the start of the tournament they said that they would win the cup for Sachin Tendulkar and stood up with their word and gave the gift for the little master. What a moment it would be for the master winning the World Cup at home ground.

After winning the World Cup Sachin said that it is the happiest and proudest day of his life and thanked the team coach and supporting staff for the team’s success and consistency.

Gambhir who played a very important role in the final against Sri Lanka in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 at Mumbai said that they wanted to win it for Sachin and dedicated the World Cup for Sachin and the people of the nation. Gambhir played a very good innings to help India come close to the target and played a key role in India’s victory in the final and win the World Cup for the second time.

Gary Kirsten the coach for the Indian team retired yesterday as he want to join his family in South Africa which includes his two growing sons Joshua and James and wife. He has already been three years away from home performing his coach job for Indian team. Gary Kirsten is the man behind the team’s consistency over he last two years and winning the world cup. After winning the World Cup Gary was carried over the shoulders of Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina and was carried all around the ground showing their respect for him they had. Gary Kirsten officially took the coaching responsibility for India on March 1st, 2008. He made Indian cricket to grow very much and as a result have won the World Cup. The main achievements of Indian team after Gary Kirsten became the coach are:

- India reached finals of Kitply Cup 2008 and Asia Cup 2008 but India lost both the finals.

- Won the Border-Gavaskar trophy against Australia.

- First bilateral series win against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka.

- First one day series win against New Zealand in New Zealand after 40 years.

- Won Compaq Cup defeating Sri Lanka in the finals in 2009.

- Won six of seven bilateral series played against the test nations.

- Achieved the top spot in the ICC test cricket rankings.

- Reached the second spot in ODI rankings.

- Defeated Australia 2-0 in ODI series last year.

- Won 5-0 against New Zealand in 2010

- Drawn a test series in 2010-11 against South Africa in 2010-11 but lost to them 3-2 in ODI series.

Yuvraj Singh was awarded the man of the tournament award for taking 15 wickets and scoring 361 runs. He played very important knocks in the tournament and played the key roles for India winning the World Cup both with the bat and the bowl. Specially, the knock against Australia in the quarter finals is the most notable one. Before the tournament he was not in a good form but came in very useful when the team needed him. After winning the quarter final match, Yuvraj Singh said that he wanted to win the World Cup for a very special person. He did not reveal the identity of that special person and said that he would say that person’s name after the final match of the World Cup. So when asked about the special person in the post-final media conference, Yuvraj said that the special person was Sachin Tendulkar. Finally, he revealed the special person name. It was a team effort and the whole played well for gifting the World Cup for the little master.

India won its second Cricket World Cup against Sri Lanka on April 2nd, 2011 at Mumbai. As an appreciation the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) has announced an award of Rs.1 crore for each of the 15 members of world cup winning squad, Rs.50 lakhs for each of the Indian team’s support staff and Rs. 25 lakhs for each member of the selection committee.

Sachin Tendulkar said that he couldn't have asked for and winning the World Cup is the proudest moment of his life. Tendulkar credited Team India for a brilliant performance. He also thanked the staff team.

Sri Lanka has lost its good performing all rounder Angelo Matthews as he is out of the tournament missing out on the big final match of World Cup 2011 at Mumbai. He strained his thigh muscle in the semi-final match against New Zealand and batted with a runner. Sri Lanka is to replace the injured Matthews and in the process the International Cricket Council has approved off-spinner Suraj Randiv as a replacement for Matthews in the squad. So with this Sri Lanka will play an extra spinner in the final as an off-spinner, Randiv replaced Medium fast bowler Matthews.

Sri Lanka spinner and the leading wicket taker in the world with 1,331 wickets Muralitharan is to leave cricket after the ongoing World Cup 2011. He turns 38 in the next month and his body is not supporting him even he has the will to play and win matches for Sri Lanka. He is currently struggling with groin and knee problems, hamstring ahead of the final clash between India and Sri Lanka in the World Cup at Mumbai. As it is his last appearance in a World Cup and last game in International Cricket he is willing to play the final match despite of the injuries he is suffering with. He wants to end his career in winning style by providing World Cup to his nation.

Sachin Tendulkar the star batting icon for India and a winner of millions of hearts is all set to play World Cup final at his home ground, Mumbai. For the master class batsman who is likely playing last World Cup in his career playing a world cup final in front of the home crowd will be a great occasion. Sachin Tendulkar is playing his sixth World Cup and is yet to be a part of the winning side. He has almost all the batting records return to his name but being in a winning side of the world cup is the only landmark that is left to be achieved by him and today’s final match against Sri Lanka will be the best occasion to reach the landmark. He is in exceptional from with the bat as he scored 464 runs in the tournament so far and is the placed third in the top run getters of the tournament. Another milestone that Sachin is near to is his 100th hundred in international cricket. He will definitely look to achieve this record in the final match against Sri Lanka and win the title for India in what we consider the master’s last World Cup. All the best Sachin!

Ashih Nehra, experienced Indian left-arm bowler has injured his hand in the match against Pakistan at Mohali and is now unable for selection of the final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 between India and Sri Lanka. So, as a replacement for him Dhoni have to opt for another bowler. One out of the two players, R Ashwin or S Sreesanth who are out of the Mohali match may get an opportunity for playing the final in Mumbai. Dhoni may pick Sresanth instead of Ashwin because the pitch at Mumbai looks to have a bit of bounce and pace for the pace bowlers initially and there will be reverse swing when the ball gets older. Keeping this in mind Dhoni may go for Sreesanth instead of Ashwin who has done very well in all the two matches that he played in the tournament. But Dhoni is not clear about whom to pick, whether he should go with three seamers including Sreesanth or go with an extra spinner including Ashwin. But Sreesanth may be more preffered to Ashwin with the pitch helping seamers a bit. We have to wait until the toss time to see who gets to fill the spot of Nehra.

India and Sri Lanka play the finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 on 2nd April, 2011 at Wankhede stadium, Mumbai. The match will be started at 2:30 pm IST. This is the first time India and Sri Lanka are facing each other in a World Cup final. The two favorites teams of Asia are playing the final and there are a lot of expectations regarding the match. The match is being played in Mumbai the home town of Sachin Tendulkar and what a moment it will be for the legendary batsman probably appearing his last World Cup to play a World Cup final before the home ground. This is Sachin’s second appearance in a World Cup final. Both the teams are looking very strong and confident as they progressed to the finals. Co-incidentally the captains of both the teams are wicket keepers and will be the one thing where it is interesting which people get to watch. Interestingly it may the last appearance in a World Cup for legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar of India and legendary spinner Muralitharan of Sri Lanka. It is a very good chance for India to win the World Cup and become the first team to win a World Cup on home soil.

Sri Lankan cricketer great Muralitharan is injured and we will have to look till Saturday whether he plays the final or not. Angelo Matthews, the all-rounder for Sri Lanka is also injured when he played in the semi final match against New Zealand the other day. On the other hand India is well fit going into the finals. There will be immense pressure on Indians rather than Sri Lankans as the Indians are playing before the home crowd that too in the final match of the World Cup. Sri Lanka is a complete side with strong batting line up including Dilshan, Tharanga, Sangakkara, Jayawardena, Chamara Silva, Matthews and Samaraweera. Their bowling mostly depends on spin from Muralitharan, Mendis, Dilshan and Herath. India are equally strong with some experienced batsmn in the line up consisting of Sehwag, Tendulkar, Gambhir, Yuvraj, Kohli, Raina and Dhoni. Their strike bowler Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel and Nehra are pace bowlers and Harbhajan is the leading spinner for India.

What an auspicious day it has been for India yesterday defeating its arch rivals Pakistan in the semi final match of a World Cup. With this, India has won all the five times it had played against Pakistan in World Cups and remained unbeaten. This win made India enter the final of the World Cup 2011 and play against Sri Lanka in Wankhede stadium, Mumbai. It is the third time India is appearing in the finals of a World Cup. The three occasions are in 1983, 2003 and now 2011. In the previous two entries India was successful in 1983 and lost to Australia in 2003.

Getting in to the details of yesterday’s match India won the toss and elected to bat. There was one change in the Indian team where Nehra replaced Ashwin. Pakistan went with the same team that it played in the quarter finals. India opening the batting went off to a flying start as Virender Sehwag got five boundaries in an over bowled by Pakistan’s strike bowler Umar Gul. He had nine fours in his score of 38 and got out to Wahab Riaz who had take five crucial Indian wickets. Later Sachin started his show which continued for time playing some wonderful shots. The Pakistan’s who early challenged that they will not allow Sachin to complete his 100th ton gave him four chances by dropping catches which passed through his bat. Sachin nicely utilized the chances given to him and got out for a useful 85 runs. Dhoni played a patient innings of 25 runs from 42 balls and Raina at the end with the lower order batsman made 36 very useful runs which helped India post 260/9 on the board.

Pakistan came very confident into bat after setting up a chase able targeting for themself and started very well with their two batsmen Kamran Akmal and M Hafeez. Zaheer provided the break through which India needed by taking Akmal’s wicket which gave a sigh of relief to the Indians. Later Hafeez and Shafiq batted really well and were looking good and this time Munaf Patel provided the wicket of Hafeez which has relieved little bit pressure of the Indians. Misbah with 56 runs and Umar Akmal with 29 runs were the two other Pakistani batsmen who made useful; contributions but their innings did not go long as the Indian bowlers were too good to pick them up. Finally Pakistan was all out for 231 runs in 49.5 overs allowing India to reach the final of the Cricket World Cup. Celebrations started all over India and everyone is congratulating India for winning against its arch rivals for fifth time in a World Cup. Sachin Tendulkar was awarded the man of the match for his useful 85 runs innings.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Sachin is near to this international 100th ton. He has missed out this ton against Australia in the quarter finals and fans will be hoping very much that the master would get it at Mohali where India plays its arch rivals Pakistan. In the match against it looked like Sachin completes his 100th century on that day itself but unfortunately got out scoring a fifty which made many fans to feel disappoints. So now all the fans across the india are hoping that Sachin should get a century against Pakistan and wins the match for India. Shahid Afridi, Pakistan Captain also made a statement that Sachin should wait until after the World Cup to complete his recording breaking ton and that they would not allow any Indian batsman to settle at the crease. Sachin is known for his gentle behavior and answers to any critics on him with the bat. So, today will he answer to Afridi’s statement with the bat scoring a century and winning it for India? We have to wait and see as all his millions of fans are waiting for the moment. All the best Sachin!

The first semi final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 is won by Sri Lanka against New Zealand and confirmed their place in the finals of the Cricket World Cup. Sri Lanka will play the final match on April 2nd at the Wankhede stadium, Mumbai with the winners of the second semi final match that will be played tomorrow i.e., either India or Pakistan.

Coming into the details of today’s match, New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat first. McCullum opened with Guptill for New Zealand and McCullum started off well hitting a four and a six in his 13 runs but soon got out to Herath. Guptill (39 runs of 65 balls), Taylor (36 runs of 55 balls), Styris (57 runs of 77 balls) and Williamson (22 of 16 balls) were the players for the Kiwis to contribute with the bat. Muralitharan playing his last World Cup match in front of the home crowd ended up taking a wicket in his last ball of 10 overs that he bowled. Lasith Malinga and Ajanta Mendis took three wickets each and played a major role in restricting the black caps for reasonably low score.

Sri Lanka who batting has been very consistent through out the tournament once again opened its batting very well with Tharanga taking the charge. He looked to be really dangerous all the time he is at the crease but later got out for 30 runs from 31 balls. Dilshan and Sangakkarra played exceptionally well and scored 73 and 54. Sri Lanka lost quick wickets at one stage and looked to be feeling the pressure but with a courageous batting from Samaraweera and Mathews they made their home safe and booked their berth in the final match at Mumbai on April 2nd, 2011.

Monday, March 28, 2011

The first semi final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 is going to be played between Sri Lanka and New Zealand on 29th March, 2011 at R Premadasa stadium, Colombo. The match is going to start at 2:30 IST. The Cricket World Cup has now almost reached to the final stage as only three teams will be left out in the tournament after this big match.

Sri Lanka have a pretty good track record at home which was proved once again on the other day when they played their quarter final against England and won it very easily without even losing a single wicket. Sri Lanka reached semi finals three times before in the World Cups but are successful only on two occasions and moved to the next stage. This will be the Sri Lankans fourth semi final and are confident that they could make home safely against the New Zealanders as they have many advantages like all their players gaining their form and the most advantageous issue is that their home ground at which they are really dangerous what ever may be the opposite team.

New Zealand are yet to win a title on their name as they played five semi finals till now and are not even successful in one occasion. They are playing their sixth and will hope to defeat the Lankans and go on to lift the Cricket World Cup. It depends on the team effort and their performance on the field if they wanted to make it to the finals on April 2nd. Hope this would be an nail biting match to watch.

Sri Lanka won over England and booked their berth in the semi final match against New Zealand at R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo on 29th March, 2011. Getting into the details of the fourth quarter final match England won he toss and elected to bat. They faced tough bowling from the Sri Lankan spinners right from the starting and it continued through out the match. The Sri Lankans looked dominant over the English team from the first ball of the match. Trott was the only man to spend more time at the crease. He scored 86 runs patiently of 115 balls facing the spin bowling of Sri Lanka in the middle. Ian Bell (25 runs), Ravi Bopara (31 runs) gave good support to Trott and helped England to post a score something over 200. Morgan with 50 runs and Prior with 22 runs made it possible and helped England to post a score of 229 for 6 on the board. All the Sri Lankan bowlers did exceptionally well to stop England getting more runs.

Gaining an upper hand in the match already, Sri Lanka opened their batting with TM Dilshan and Upul Tharanga who were in a good form and provided good starts for Sri Lanka through out the tournament. Dilshan scored 108 runs and Tharanga scored 102 runs made Sri Lanka to win comfortably by 10 wickets and laid their way to the semi finals. None of he England bowlers managed to pick up at least a wicket. Tharanga and Dilshan were involved in a partnership of 231 runs which saw Sri Lanka home safely. Their opening partnerships of 700+ run so far in the tournament at present is the highest for any team that participated in the history of the Cricket World Cup. With this England are out of the tournament and Sri Lanka entered semifinals and will play New Zealand on 29h March, 2011 at the same venue.

The Punjab Cricket Association at Mohali is all ready to host the most anticipated semi final of ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 between India and Pakistan. Daljeet Singh, the curator of Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) said that the Mohali wicket will help the seam bowlers by providing them good general pace and bounce under the lights which is the basic nature of the wicket. India was beaten by Pakistan two times at this venue so India got to be a little careful with the seamers of Pakistan. Singh said that due may play a role in the match, in order to avoid due they will stop watering the ground three days ahead of the match and will be using vetting agent APSA-80 which does not completely avoid due but certainly minimizes it. He also stated that he is using light rollers for the wickets instead of heavy ones to avoid over preparing of he wicket and bind to the general ICC guidelines that the pitch should be batman friendly. He admitted that he is too excited for the match and wants to see how the wicket behaves, but is not nervous and hopes a good game of cricket at Mohali on 30th March, 2011.

The Pakistani players yesterday reached Chandigarh to play their semi final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 against India at Mohali on March 30th, 2011. They arrived at Taj Hotel yesterday afternoon with tight security through out the way to the hotel from airport. Each and every member of the team is provided with strict guidelines and was asked to inform them four hours before they want to go out. The Chandigarh police are giving out their best for ensuring a secured Indian-Pakistan match and avoid any terror attacks. They also promised to provide enough security to the Pakistani fans who are visiting Mohali to enjoy the match. There will be around 2,000 police men in and around the stadium on March 30th, 2011 for providing security to the high profile match.

Team India today reached Chandigarh, the capital city of Punjab for playing its next match against Pakistan. This high profile semi final match will be played on 30th March, 2011 at Mohali. The Indian team arrived there in the midst of high security as security personnel stood on both the sides of the road right from Chandigarh airport and Taj Hotel and the traffic was stopped and diverted through out the way giving way for the team bus. Chandigarh Police took it as a challenge to provide security to the teams and placed 1,000 police men inside and outside the hotel. The police provided a do’s and don’ts list to the team specifying what to do and what not to do and asked them to inform four hours in advance if they want to go out of the hotel so that they can provide enough security. The Chandigarh police are not taking any chance and acing wise in providing high level security to the teams ahead of the big match.

A terrorist, who targeted to carry out a serious attack in Sri Lanka in the ongoing Cricket World Cup, got arrested jointly by Pakistan and International Police Organization. Speaking on this Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik said that Interpol Secretary General Ronald Noble has supervised the act of arresting the terrorist with the corporation of Maldives, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. They also informed India about the Taliban acts that already started targeting the world cup for attacks and that to take safety measures for the India-Pakistan match Wednesday for a safe World Cup.

Pakistan captain and leading wicket taker of the World Cup so far, Shahid Afridi yesterday shared his thoughts on the big match India vs Pakistan at Mohali on 30th March, 2011. Considering the current form of his team, he is very confident that they can beat India. He also added that his team will not allow any of the Indian players to settle and play a big innings in the semi final and that Indian batting legend Sachin Tendulkar has to wait until after the World Cup for his 100th ton in international cricket. Sachin completed 18,000 runs in One Day International cricket in the quarter final match against Australia and is waiting to complete his 100th century in International cricket.

Afridi stated that his team wants to play India in the semi final and the expectations would be high and the team which holds its nerves will be safe home in this pressure packed match. He also expressed that it is match with lot and lots of pressure as the expectations of the fans of both the teams are very high and India will be feeling a load of pressure as they are playing at home. He also added that his present team has the habit of changing the history and that his team is ready to change the unbeaten Indian team record against Pakistan in World Cups till now. He also said that his team contains young players though they do not have the experience of facing India in India they are capable of handling the pressure.

The fourth quarter final match will be played between the co-hosts Sri Lanka and England in R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo. The match will start at 9:00 GMT. The team winning this will play its semi final match on 29th March, 2011 against New Zealand at the same venue. Sri Lanka has the advantage of playing at home. They are very tuff to beat them on their home soil. England is also not at their greatest of forms but will look to qualify for the semi final by winning this. England were not looking comfortable right from the start of the Cricket World Cup, there are ups and downs for them throughout the group stage matches. On the other hand, Sri Lanka are looking stronger than the English team as the won 4 of their group stage matches and lost one match to Pakistan and to be considered the most advantage is their home soil, they are really really very strong to beat home. So England has to play very carefully to win the game and reach semi finals. They have reached a Wold Cup three times but are yet to win the title. Sri Lanka reached finals two times in 1996 and 2007 and won it 1996 but failed to win against Australia in 2007. However one Asian team will definitely compete in the World Cup final be it India or Pakistan as they already reached semi final and on of the favorites of the tournament will make it to the finals if they beat England today and defeat New Zealand in the semi finals. Let’s get into the stats of Sri Lanka vs England ODI matches.

Sri Lanka vs England head to head in ODIs:

England won 23 and Sri Lanka won 21.

Sri Lanka vs England head to head in World Cups:

Total no. of matches played: 8England won 6 and Sri Lanka won 2.

Sri Lanka vs England head to head in Sub-Continent:

Total no. of matches played: 17England won 7 and Sri Lanka won 10.

Sri Lanka vs England head to head at Colombo:

Total no. of matches played: 4England won 1 and Sri Lanka won 3.

Sri Lanka looks a complete side compared to England with their batsmen and bowlers. But England is facing some mental toughness with their front line bowlers not in good form. Hope the match will be very interesting like India-Australia match the other day.

The big match that everyone has dreamt for and waiting for has come. It is India vs Pakistan in a Cricket World Cup semi final match. There was anticipation every where in both India and Pakistan on Thursday when India played Australia. Each and everyone in India and Pakistan followed the game closely till the end expecting India to win as it was a situation where if India wins, it will collide with Pakistan that too in a semi-final match. It has been every individual’s dream and passion in both the countries for an India vs Pakistan game. It is a feeling among people of both the countries that their home side should win against their opponents very importantly and losing the finals will not matter to them if their home team wins this match. MS Dhoni said the same at the presentation ceremony when he was asked about the semi final match by Ravi Shastri. India sent the mighty Australians out of the tournament yesterday to book a berth in the semi final of the World Cup and play against Pakistan. With this loss, it has been after 12 years the three consecutive World Cup winning Australians lost a knock out match in a World Cup where as India entered the semi finals after eight years.

India will play Pakistan on 30th March, 2011 in the second semi final match of the Cricket World Cup 2011. The match will be played at Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali. Mohali is in Punjab, the border of India and Pakistan and also the home ground for Yuvraj Singh.

How many matches did India win out of all the nine games it played at Mohali? - 5

What is the highest team score at Mohali and by which team? – 351/5 by South Africa

What is Pakistan’s highest score at Mohali? – 322/6 against India

What is India’s highest score at Mohali? – 321/9 against Pakistan

What is the lowest team score at Mohali? – 89/10 by Pakistan

Who is the batsman to score highest individual runs in ODI at Mohali? Sachin Tendulkar ( 281 in 6 matches)

Who is the bowler to take more no. of wickets at Mohali? Harbhajan Singh ( 9 wickets in 5 matches)

What are the best bowling figures at Mohali? – 5/21 by M Ntini

How many matches did India play against Pakistan in world cups till now? 4

Which team won more no. of matches in India vs Pakistan matches in World Cups? India

Which team won the most number of matches at Mohali in India vs Pakistan matches? Pakistan

The mouth watering match between India and Pakistan will be played on 30th March, 2011 at Mohali. It is a big game of cricket rivalry India taking on Pakistan in a semi-final match of World Cup, what a match it will be. It is going to happen in Punjab the border of India and Pakistan. For this very special match The Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh invited Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani to watch the encounter along with him at Mohali. The Indian Prime Minister feels a great pleasure inviting the Prime Minister and President of Pakistan to watch the fabulous match. All together it will be a great game of cricket on Wednesday between India and Pakistan.

New Zealand beat South Africa in the third quarter final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and as a result enters into the semi finals. This is the sixth time they entered the semi finals but could not manage to win the World Cup even once in the previous five contests. South Africa once again lost in the knock out stage of a World Cup and left out disappointing without winning even a single title. They are one of the favorites of the tournament before entering the World Cup and also stood top in the points table of Group B but could not manage to win against Kiwis in Dhaka. But with this South African team getting out of the World Cup, we are losing one of he best fielding sides of he world.

In the big match today New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat, they lost two wickets in quick session but later on Ryder and Taylor built up their innings and helped the scoreboard to keep ticking without losing a wicket. In the process Ross Taylor got out for 43 runs and ten Styris was dismissed for 16. Later Williamson was the only one who scored 38 runs and J Ryder got out for 83 runs. The lower middle order and lower order totally wrapped up for a very less score and managed to post just 221 runs on the board. M Morkel was the pick of the bowlers for South Africa with three wickets and Ryder was the best batsman for New Zealand today contributing 83 runs with his bat.

South Africa are pretty happy getting into bat with a comfortable score on the board to chase, but the New Zealand bowlers bowled really well to get rid of the Proteas. Nathan McCullum got an early break through with the ball for the Kiwis dismissing Amla and later continued his good bowling picking up three wickets for his team. Later, Jacob Oram came into the attack and picked up 4 wickets to destroy the South African batting line up. He claimed the man of the match award for his bowling figures of 4-39 and winning it for the New Zealand. G Smith (28 runs), J Kallis (47 runs), AB De Villiers (35) and Du Plessis (36) were the only South African batsmen to get into the double figures. Kallis is the highest scorer for South Africa with 47 runs. With this New Zealand reached semi-finals surprisingly as they are not in the favorite teams of the World Cup till the tournament started. With this India, Pakistan, New Zealand reached semi finals. New Zealand will play its semi final match of the Cricket World Cup on 29th March, 2011 at Colombo with the winner of the fourth quarter final match that is going to be played tomorrow between England and Sri Lanka.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

In the second quarter final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 India will take on the mighty Australians on 24th March, 2011 at Sardar Vallabhai Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad. The match will be started at 2:30 pm IST.

India ended second in the points table in Group B after a comfortable win against West Indies on Sunday in the last match of group stage. Australia finished third in the points table of Group B after losing to Pakistan and ending up their record of 34 consecutive match wins in World Cups. India will have to keen in mind that the Australian pace attack with Brett Lee, Johnson, Tait and their toughness in the field can cause trouble to them in any situation. Comparing to the Australians, the Indian performance is a bit weak and need to improve to match the Aussies. If we compare the batting line-up then certainly Indians will be on the upper side as their strong batting line up which is their main strength can destroy any opposition at any situation. With the improvement in form of Yuvraj Singh the middle order appears to be strengthened. Sehwag will also be available and fit for this big match. The co-hosts have an advantage of playing at home which can also turn as a disadvantage at pressure situations.

India has won only two of the seven matches that they played against Australia in World Cups. The men in blue have not won even a single match in the World Cups against Australia since 24 years. Remember that India even lost their World Cup final in 2003 to Ponting’s team. So with all these stats India has to give out all their best efforts in the field if they have to qualify for the semi finals defeating the defending champions Australia in this mighty and much awaited clash of the World Cup.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

The knock out matches in the Cricket World Cup 2011 are going to start from tomorrow as the league matches ended up two days back on Sunday. The first quarter final match is going to be played tomorrow (23rd March, 2011) between the leader of the Group A and the team with fourth place in Group B i.e., between Pakistan and West Indies. The match is going to be played at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur and will be starting at 2:00 pm IST. The team winning this match will get qualified for the semi-finals.

Pakistan are on a good run as they topped the points table in Group A with 10 points being the first to qualify to the quarter finals and most importantly putting an end to unbeaten 34 match record of Australia in World Cups. They are high on confidence and will go tomorrow’s match with full of confidence to face the Caribbeans. Pakistani captain Shahid Afridi is on a good run as he is bowling well and is involved in some of his team’s victories on its way to the quarter finals. Pakistan is good in the field as they remained impressive in the field with both the ball and the bat.

West Indies are at fourth position in Group B and qualified to the quarter finals with the help of their run rate being more than Bangladesh even though both the teams have equal points. They lost their last match against India which will keep them a bit low in confidence compared to the Pakistan in tomorrow’s match. With Gayle, Chanderpaul and Roach being fit to tomorrow’s match there will be some boost up for the team.

West Indies have won only three of their last 16 matches they played against Pakistan. West Indies should do well in all the here departments if they want to reach the semi finals. However both the teams will not take it for granted and will give out their best as it the knock out stage of the world cup. Hope the team that will put in its full efforts will reach the semi finals.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

India won the 42nd match i.e., the final group stage match of the Cricket World Cup 2011 against West Indies with all-round performance once again from Yuvraj Singh. India won the toss and elected to bat. Sehwag did not play in the match. Sachin and Gambhir are the openers for India with Rampaul opening the bowling for West Indies and got rid of Sachin for just 2 runs. Later Gambhir and Kohli looked like building up a good partnership but Rampaul took the wicket of Gambhir providing the breakthrough that his team needed. Later Yuvraj Singh and Kohli brought India to a good position with Yuvraj scoring a wonderful century which included 2 sixes and 10 fours. The batting powerplay is the area where India once again suffered as they got all out for 268 runs in 49.1 overs. Rampaul is the pick of the bowlers for the West Indies with five wickets.

Chasing a target of 269 runs West Indian openers started well but Ashwin soon got rid of Edwards with his carom ball. Bravo joined Smith at the crease and played well for his 22 runs before he got out for 22 runs. Sarwan and Smith looked like putting the West Indies in a comfortable but it was Zaheer Khan who has done the damage to the West Indies by picking up Smith for 81 runs. After this no West Indian batsman stayed at the wickets but simply threw their wickets allowing India to conquer the match. India won by 80 runs with Zaheer Khan getting 3 wickets, Ashwin and Yuvraj with two wickets each, Harbhajan and Raina with one wicket each. West Indies got all out for 188 runs in 43 overs. Yuvraj Singh was awarded the man of the match for his all round performance of 113 runs and taking two wickets.

The 42nd match, last match in the group stage of ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 will be played between India and West Indies at M.A.Chidambaram stadium in Chennai. Both the teams look to win the match as it important for both of them to win, gain some points and improve their net run rate to go confidently into the quarter finals.

India have to improve their batting in the five overs of the batting power play and avoid losing of quick wickets particularly in these overs as they have already done in the matches against England and South Africa where one match resulted in a tie and the other resulted in a loss. There should be improvement in their bowling and fielding performances if they want to win tomorrow and make a confident entry in to the quarter finals. On the other hand, West Indies despite of good efforts in the match against England the other day lost to them allowing England to make way into the quarter finals. Gayle, Pollard and Bravo will be the key players to look for West Indies in tomorrow’s match. Hope the team with best performance wins in this interesting match.